SynthesisPsychological medicine2026
Associations between five forms of child maltreatment and depression: a multilevel meta-analytic comparison.
Synthesis in Psychological medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Data traceability and interpretational limits in comparing child maltreatment forms and depression.Psychological medicine · 2026Article
- Childhood maltreatment and adolescent non-suicidal self-injury: cross-sectional conditional process and network analyses of depressive symptoms and physical activity.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
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Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
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Abstract
backgroundChild maltreatment is strongly linked to depression, yet comparisons across maltreatment forms have been inconsistent. Prior meta-analyses mostly used single-level models and combined studies assessing different subsets of maltreatment forms, introducing statistical dependence and between-samples confounds that can distort cross-form comparisons.
methodsWe synthesized data from 12 eligible meta-analytic reviews (those assessing at least emotional, physical, and sexual abuse, and providing effect size data), extracting 563 effect sizes from 217 depression risk studies and 501 effect sizes from 157 depression severity studies. Meta-analyses used two-level random-effects multilevel models, accounting for within-study dependence. Initial analyses compared all abuse forms plus emotional and physical neglect. Subsequent analyses compared just abuse forms either from samples assessing all three ('complete-abuse' samples) or only one or two ('incomplete-abuse' samples), which addressed between-samples confounds.
resultsEffect sizes for different maltreatment forms were strongly correlated within studies (median
conclusionsBy modeling effect size dependence and reducing between-samples confounds, this study provides clearer evidence that emotional maltreatment - particularly emotional abuse - is most strongly linked to depression. These findings underscore the need for greater clinical and prevention focus on emotional forms of maltreatment.
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